In online forums, users are reporting a variety of issues with new Windows Phone 8 handsets. The complaints include spontaneous reboots, problems with e-mail syncing, random freezes and battery issues, and appear to mostly affect two of the most prominent phones for the new platform -- the HTC 8X and Nokia's Lumia 920.

When Windows Phone 8 launched at the end of October, the HTC 8X was handed out at the event, and the Lumia 920 has been considered Nokia's flagship device. But now these two highly visible handsets are the source of a variety of complaints.

At the Windows Phone Central users forum, for instance, a commenter named nicooke posted last week that the 8X undergoes a "random reboot about once a day," adding that "other than that it is a great phone." Numerous other postings on that site recount variations of the same problem.

Facebook, Skype or...?

On Microsoft's own Community forum, users are reporting multiple reboots -- as many as eight a day, or three times within 20 minutes -- on either the 8X or the 920, and Nokia users also complain on that company's forum of lockups with the 920. In addition, there are reports of e-mail accounts on the 920 being stuck in endless loops.

For the Lumia 920, random freezes appear to be a more commonly reported issue. Some users have reported that freezing appears to happen when using Bluetooth peripherals in conjunction with the phone, and at least one customer said their 920 locked up within 10 minutes of leaving the AT&T store on launch day.

Various fixes are being attempted by users for the two phones. Some are uninstalling the Facebook app or the Skype preview app, with varying results. One owner suggests the e-mail problem may be related to a merging of Hotmail and Skype contacts, and others point the finger at such apps as Words with Friends or even possibly the camera function on either device.

Windows Phone 7 Update

Others have disabled the tap-to-send near-field communication (NFC) feature on the 920, which appears to improve battery life. There is some speculation that Nokia's firmware is constantly pinging for nearby NFC-compatible devices, causing some of the problems.

Some users have tried wiping their device clean. The wiping route appears to have solved the e-mail problem for some, while others are stuck on the opening screen. At least one user also reported a reboot problem with a Windows Phone 7 device, but most complaints concern Phone 8.

Microsoft has issued a statement that it is "currently investigating reports of these incidents." Similarly, Nokia has said that it is "currently looking into the situation and will provide guidance when we have more information," while HTC has not yet issued a statement.

The success of Windows 8 is critically important for both Microsoft and Nokia. Microsoft has yet to get a major foothold into the mobile space, and Nokia is abandoning its Symbian platform for Microsoft's.

But Nokia may also be hedging their bets a bit in keeping Phone 7 going for a while. Over the weekend, a Nokia executive reportedly told a developers' conference in Singapore that a Windows Phone 7.8 update would be released shortly, and that there might be another update after that one.

Tell Us What You Think

Comment:

Name:

sk:

Posted: 2014-04-15 @ 7:04am PT

I have a mic problem in my lumia925. It does no record sound on video. I can't use cartona also. This is all after lumia black update. So please can anyone tell about it

dcg:

Posted: 2013-02-26 @ 1:22pm PT

I have a nokia 822 windows 8 phone. nice phone, operating system is a POS. went back to verizon store and had them reactivate my droid x. problem solved!

Marcia N.:

Posted: 2013-02-13 @ 9:58am PT

Hello, I am on my 2nd Nokia 920 Lumia and my problem is it keeps shutting down and now it won't turn on. I have only had my 2nd phone for 4 days now. It is doing exactly what my other phone was doing. What the heck is up with this?? You can't even get to the battery because the phone is sealed shut. This is ridiculous. It's the only phone I have to communicate with my family. I am a mom and a wife. What is wrong with this phone????

Larry S:

Posted: 2013-02-07 @ 4:28am PT

I have had my Lumia 920 for less than 2 months now and I already had to use the warranty. My phone shut off and did not turn back on.

Roger binny:

Posted: 2013-01-28 @ 7:09pm PT

I got htc 8s and already facing problems with memory management of wp8. I installed just few apps like whatsapp and facebook but other folder is eating lots of space. The size of other increasing hour by hour.

Craig:

Posted: 2013-01-23 @ 10:34am PT

Had my 8x for a month now. Haven't had one issue

fjsj:

Posted: 2013-01-18 @ 12:40am PT

Whenever I go online my Lumia 920 heats up very, very hot on the top part of the phone and gets very slow. I believe this phone needs a better antenna.

Zeus:

Posted: 2012-12-09 @ 2:36pm PT

My Lumia 920 battery holds only 6 hours a day.

Peter:

Posted: 2012-12-03 @ 6:16am PT

I have been using my 8X for 20 days and it is a phenomenal phone. It truely makes my old iPhone 4S and Droid Razor look like antiques.

stock_slider:

Posted: 2012-11-22 @ 9:34am PT

Got my 822 several days ago - so far no problems. Love it!

zigzagr:

Posted: 2012-11-20 @ 11:30pm PT

I have had absolutely no problems with my 920. I work 13 hour days at work and I can get almost 2 full days with one charge. I haven't had any freezes or random restarts at all. People that are having battery problems need to learn how to configure their phones. This is with any phone and/or OS.

Paul:

Posted: 2012-11-20 @ 2:45pm PT

tried logging into hotmail - 17 verification codes later still no access no emails just a new damn verification code that is of no use as the website wont accept it as apparently it expires before you can enter it

GNexus:

Posted: 2012-11-20 @ 9:14am PT

I have the 920...absolutely no problems at all. Loving my WP8!

M.O.:

Posted: 2012-11-20 @ 5:57am PT

I took my 822 back because it wouldn't handle MS Office files very well and I couldn't drag/drop from my pc to the phone without using the cloud. When MS can't work with MS, it's time for me to go to something else.

Bryan Yopp:

Posted: 2012-11-20 @ 5:03am PT

Yes, and I have a Nokia Lumia 810 with 64GB microSD card and the syncing of album art for music doesn't work and when I play a song from the song list, the entire phone locks up and the music plays but nothing else. Luckily, the phone has a removable battery so I could resolve the phone being locked up by removing the battery.